Singapore real estate investment trusts (REITs) were seen as a go-to investment for yield-hungry investors, up until a black-swan event created havoc. On April Fools’ Day, SPH REIT (SGX: SK6U) took the Singapore investing community by surprise when it became the first REIT to slash its quarterly distribution per unit (DPU) by 79% amid the challenges brought about by Covid-19. The DPU cut was despite its gross revenue rising 26% for the quarter. The retail REIT seems to have set the precedent, with other REITs affected by the coronavirus pandemic following suit, including the REITs belonging to the Straits Times Index (STI). Those REITs are commonly known as blue-chips and they are Ascendas REIT (SGX: A17U), CapitaLand Commercial Trust (SGX: C61U), CapitaLand Mall Trust (SGX: C38U), Mapletree Commercial Trust (SGX: N2IU), and Mapletree Logistics Trust (SGX: M44U). Affected blue-chip REITs didn’t cut their DPUs to the extent of what SPH REIT...